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Federation of Master Builders chief executive Brian Berry said flexibility in the funding model was “critical” to the success of the apprenticeship levy.

He said: “As long as larger contractors are unable, or unwilling, to play a greater role in industry training, then it’s vital that funds can be rerouted to smaller firms.

“The severity of our industry’s skills shortage means we need to ensure every single penny of apprenticeship levy that is extracted from the construction sector is reinvested in high-quality construction apprenticeships.”

Mr Berry added that the trade association had concerns the money would be “left languishing in the general pot” before being released to other sectors.

However, he said the issue now was to ensure the digital voucher model is easy for small firms to use.

Two further funding policies have also been confirmed by the government.

An additional 20 per cent in funding will be given to training providers to train apprentices aged 16-18, which CITB director of policy Steve Radley said responded in part to the industry’s concerns on the affordability of training apprentices.

This means construction training providers will be forced to use the existing apprenticeship framework, which will be subject to a 30 per cent funding cut from April 2017.

Mr Radley said: “The funding offer has been improved and transition periods have been introduced, which offer the industry breathing space. The priority now must be to get the new standards agreed as quickly as possible, so that employers can use them and access the higher funding rates they carry.”

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